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Today, the White House announced that WNBA star Brittney Griner has been released from Russian detention and is coming home \\u2013 in exchange for a notorious arms dealer. We talk about why this deal happened now, and what it means for other American hostages.

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More than nine months after she was arrested in Russia, WNBA star Brittney Griner has been freed. Griner is one of the world\\u2019s best women\\u2019s basketball players. She\\u2019s been in Russian custody since February, when authorities detained her at the airport and accused her of carrying vape cartridges containing cannabis oil, which is illegal in Russia. Like many women\\u2019s basketball players, Grinersupplements her income by playing overseas during the WNBA offseason (Griner\\u2019s arrest brought attention to pay inequality.)

Moscow released the athlete in exchange for convicted Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout. Known as the \\u201cmerchant of death,\\u201d the infamous criminal is a top prize for Russian officials.

For Biden, this is a victory - but it\\u2019s a bittersweet one. Another American, former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan, was initially supposed to be a part of this swap, but Russia refused to let him go.